Persuasive Speech Writing and Delivery

Writing Persuasive Speech

• Persuasive writing aims to convince the audience about a topic, persuading them to take action or agree with the speaker/writer.

Writing Strategies

• Start with a compelling introduction, include a well-supported body that addresses counterarguments, and a strong call to action to conclude.
• Tailor the message to the audience's values and beliefs for greater impact.

Delivering Strategies

• Rehearsing a speech ensures confident delivery with proper tone, pacing, and body language.
• Add visual aids and get external feedback to refine delivery.

Techniques

• Consider the audience's age, gender, culture, and interests to make the topic suitable.
• Determine what you want the audience to learn, do, and understand to clarify the goal.
• Research the topic to be familiar with it.
• Establish an outline by sketching main points.
• Use facts and evidence to support statements.
• Ethos establishes credibility, logos strengthens reasoning, and pathos help connect with the audience.

Three Persuasive Appeals

• People can be persuaded differently by using three persuasive appeals.
• Ethos appeals to credibility.
  • Builds trust and respect.
  • Strengthens the argument by building credibility.
• Logos appeals to logic and reasoning.
  • Encourages rational thinking.
  • Strengthens arguments with information.
• Pathos appeals to emotions and ideals.
  • Evokes specific emotions like fear, sadness, sympathy, happiness, and anger.
  • Supports ideals the audience values.

Real-Life Examples

• In the home, a parent persuades their child to make healthy choices.
• In school, a student tries to convince the school board to implement a later start time.
• In politics, a politician advocates for a new policy.
• In business, a salesperson pitches a product to a customer.

Propaganda Techniques

• Propaganda techniques influence public opinion/behavior by appealing to emotions
• Often found in political speeches, advertising, news, and social media to manipulate public perception.

Strategies for Using Propaganda Techniques

• Emotionally appealing by using loaded language.
• Other techniques utilized may be:
  • Create urgency
  • Target demographics
  • Leverage authority figures
  • Employ repetition, fearmongering, and one-sided presentation

Common Techniques

• Consider the audience by encouraging alignment with popular opinion ("everyone else is doing it").
• Testimonials use endorsements from celebrities to gain credibility.
• Glittering Generalities use vague, positive phrases to evoke emotional responses.
• Name-Calling attaches negative labels to discredit the opposition.
• Plain Folks present the spokesperson as an relatable ordinary person.
• Card Stacking selectively presents only positive information.
• Transfer associates feelings/values between objects/ideas, often via symbols.
• Fear Appeal instills fear by suggesting negative consequences unless specific actions are taken.
• Logical Fallacies uses flawed reasoning or misleading arguments.
• Euphemisms softens harsh realities with mild or vague language.
• Repetition reinforces messages by repeating them to stick in the audience's mind.

Real-Life Examples

• Political ads that label opponents as “traitors” or "radicals" fall under political issues
• Commercial advertisements highlighting only benefits of a product without mentioning side effects fall under commercial issues
• Religious interpretations of texts as the only correct one falls under religious issues
• Media uses trends to endorse products through modern advertising channels falls under media issues.

Primary Sources

• Original documents/evidence from the studied time, event, or person.
• Presents history through the eyes of someone who lived it.
• May include letters, diaries, photographs, speeches, interviews, official records, clothing, and tools.
• Helps to understand not only what occurred , but also how people felt during the period.
• This gives insight free of later interpretations.

Characteristics of Primary Sources

Firsthand Account

• Created by someone directly involved or present.
• It's a direct narration by a personal witness.
• Example: Anne Frank's Diary is a firsthand account of her experiences during World War II while hiding from the Nazis.

Original Material

• The source is an original, unaltered record.
• Original materials are documents, items, or works created at the time of the event.
• The U.S. Constitution, written and signed in 1787, is an original document from the founding period.
• NASA photographs of the Moon Landing (1969) are original, taken during the mission.

Direct Evidence

• Provides unfiltered, direct information about an event.
• Direct evidence offers immediate access to an event without mediation.
• A video recording of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech is direct evidence.
• A police report from the scene of a crime can be considered direct evidence of the incident.

Types of Primary Sources

Written Documents

• Letters: Personal correspondence that provides insights into individual perspectives.
• Diaries and Journals: Daily accounts of a person's thoughts, actions, or events.
• Speeches: Oral presentations made by public figures or leaders.
• Autobiographies and Memoirs: Personal narratives.

Official Documents

• Laws, Bills, and Legislation: Written records of laws passed or government action.
• Court Records: Legal documents from trials or hearings.
• Census Records: Government-collected data about populations.

Photographs and Visual Art

• Photographs: Pictures capturing real-life moments, events, or people.
• Paintings and Drawings: Artistic representations reflecting a historical period.

Audio and Video Recordings

• Audio Recordings: Sounds recorded like audio interviews, speeches, or music from the time.
• Video Recordings: Film or video footage that documents events as they happen.

Physical Artifacts

• Objects and Tools: Items offering insights into daily life, culture, or industry.
• Clothing: Apparel worn by people during specific times.
• Buildings and Architecture: Structures reflecting culture, needs, etc.

Newspaper and Magazines

• Newspapers: Articles reflecting current public perception.
• Magazines: Periodicals showing culture, fashion, and news of the time.

Secondary Sources

• Secondary sources interpret, analyze, or summarize primary sources and are created after an event, by someone who had no direct experience.
• Examples: textbooks, biographies, documentaries, and research papers.
• Secondary sources help explain or give context about historical events by organizing information, offering different perspectives, and making connections between events.

Characteristics of Secondary Sources

Interpretation and Analysis

• Secondary sources provide context and explanation of the event.
• They provide a deeper understanding by analyzing primary sources.
• Scholarly articles on the causes of World War I can offer secondary analyses.

Second-Hand Information

• They use primary and other secondary sources to present a broader or analytical view.
• These are made after the event to explain things.
• A book about Abraham Lincoln can be considered second-hand information that was written after his life.

Reflection on Primary Sources

• Help contextualize or explain primary data.
• Letters from Soldiers for example helps explain how it shows the soldier's fear.

Types of Secondary Sources

• Books (e.g., history books, biographies)
• Articles and Essays (in academic journals or magazines)
• Documentaries (that analyze historical events)
• Encyclopedias and Reference Works
• Critical Reviews or Commentaries (on primary source materials, events, or periods)
• Theses or Dissertations (written by scholars analyzing specific topics)
• Historical Overviews or Surveys (providing broad analysis of an event or era)

Bias

• Bias occurs when personal feelings or opinions affect explanations, making them unfair or one-sided.
• It can occur in writing, news, history, or everyday conversations.
• It can distort reality by omitting details or showing only one side.
• It is important to notice bias so we can understand things more fairly and see different points of view News stories ignoring other side makes it biased.

How to Identify Bias in Primary Sources

• Primary sources reflect the personal views of the creator, and bias can show through emotions or opinions.

How to Spot Bias:

• Personal Perspective: emotional opinions.
• Language Choice: Strong words can show bias.
• Historical Context: The time and place a source was created can influence bias.

How to Identify Bias in Secondary Sources

• Secondary sources are interpreting primary sources and may be biased.

How to Spot Bias:

• Author's Perspective: The author's beliefs or background may influence their analysis.

• Selective Information: Leaving out facts/emphasizing one side can be biased.

• Tone and Language: Strong/Negative words like “brilliant”, "power-hungry", and “tyrannical” can indicate bias.

Modals

• Modals are auxiliary/helping verbs expressing possibility, necessity, permission, or ability that can show the speaker's mood or attitude.
• Modals do not change form and are followed by the base form of a verb to clarify meaning.

Functions/Elements

Ability

• Can: States what someone/something is capable of, e.g., "She can drive really well."
• Could: States past capabilities, e.g., "Ever since I was 10, I could ride a bike.”

Obligation/Necessity

• Must: indicates an importance, for example: "You must be careful when crossing the road."
• Have to: similar to "must" mostly utilized for everyday situations, for example: "You have to arrive here at 6pm."

Advice

• Should: Offers recommendations, e.g., "You should get some rest if you're not feeling well."

Permission

• Can: Used for asking/giving permission, e.g., "You can leave once you finish eating your meal."
• May: A more formal way of giving/asking for permission, e.g., “May I borrow your book?"
• Could: A polite way of asking, e.g., "Could you hand me that glass of water?”

Possibilities

• May: Expresses uncertain possibilities, e.g., “I may not arrive on time."
• Might: Indicates uncertainty, e.g., "He might go to the party if he finishes his work early."
• Could: Signals a possible event, e.g., "She could have gone to the mall, but I'm not so sure."

In-text and Full-Text APA Citation

• Prevent plagiarism by crediting original sources.
• Writers demonstrate the provision of demonstrating the information is reliable and trustworthy.

In-text Citation

• A method to credit sources in the body of the research paper.
• Provides brief source information (author's last name, publication year) for full reference in the bibliography.

Different Citation Formats

(For In-Text)

• APA (7th edition): (Author's Last Name, Year of Publication), e.g., (Smith, 2020).
• MLA (8th edition): (Author's Last Name Page Number), e.g., (Smith 23).
• Chicago (17th edition): (Author's Last Name Year, page number), e.g., (Smith 2020, 23).

Full-Text Citation

• Also known as reference list entry or works cited entry, this provides complete details about a source.
• Utilized at the end of a document in a reference list/bibliography with elements like the author's last name, publication year, title, and source details.

Different Citation Formats

(For Full-Text)

• APA (7th edition): Format includes author's last name, publication year, title, and source details.
• MLA (8th edition): Format includes Author's Last Name, First Name, Title of the Work, Publisher, Year published.
• Chicago (17th edition): Format includes Author's Last Name, First Name, Title of the Work, Publisher, Year published.